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The Fake TV-Show Towns I Wish I Lived In

Michelle Williams just took little Matilda—who’s somehow seven now, by the way—on vacation to Wilmington, N.C. If it sounds familiar, it’s probably because you’re a true Dawson’s junkie, and haven’t forgotten that that’s where the Creek was filmed. I imagine that for Michelle, this was a sweetly nostalgic moment, something like when I make a pit stop in Villanova, Pa., where I went to college, except I don’t have the excuse of a kid to show around—I’m just looking for Hope’s Cookies.

Michelle said at the New Yorker festival over the weekend that down in Wilmington, she saw people she hadn't seen and went to places she hadn't been for a decade. Reading this, I nodded right along, fondly—because even though it was located in North Carolina, while watching Dawson's I longed to live in Capeside, Massachusetts. Didn’t we all? All I wanted was to wear khaki jean jackets and crawl into the bedroom windows of cute local boys. As a 29-year-old, that sounds really bad. I mean, khaki jean jackets? Kidding.

But Capeside wasn't the only made-up small-screen town I yearned for. Far from it.

It started when I was a kid and I wanted to live in the The Cosby Show's neighborhood. Sort of a weird way to kick off this run, since I feel like you literally never saw the Huxtables' environs. All I knew of this town (which was technically supposed to be Flatbush, Brooklyn, I later discovered) was that it had homes in which you could burst in the front door all happy and snow-covered (or happy and wearing every '90s trend), swinging doors to the kitchen, and a little yard in the back. This was enough for me, and grown-up realities have confirmed my instincts, since it turns out that Cosby home was located at 10 Leroy Street, a pretty swanky Manhattan block.

Later, the Capeside of Dawson's was only one of my teen-drama favorites—I would've built a whole county based on the WB if I could. I loved Everwood, Colorado, with its towering trees and its young men who were just slightly manlier than the dudes on One Tree Hill. (I did not want to live in Tree Hill. While I hate to miss out on Brooke's awesome store, I don’t think I ever would have gotten used to the indigenous population of Chad Michael Murray lurking around different corners, squinting mournfully at someone. Go dribble in silhouette against the sunset, Lucas!) Anyway, between the fact that I loved Everwood and how good Pawnee, Indiana looks to me some days (a city council who cares! and Duke Silver), I'm pretty sure I subconsciously just want to live wherever Chris Pratt is.

Hypothetically, the Dillon, Texas, of Friday Night Lights would also be high on my list, but only if I could be guaranteed a spot on the cheerleading squad. And only if people wouldn't get sick of me drawling, "Texas forever," because that would be happening a lot. Realistically, though, I think the TV town I'm most suited for is lovely Stars Hollow of Gilmore Girls. The pretty shuttered houses, the green in the middle of the village, and, of course, Luke's Diner. At the time, I was pretty sure that being a real grown-up would prove to mean getting to spend lots of time in such an establishment, navigating the complex, charged vibe between me and a stubbled, earthy guy in a flannel and backwards cap. But I would've settled for just the steady diet of coffee, burgers and fries too.